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Enthusiasts and car dealers alike are getting in on the popular car tuning industry, which has shown to be quite profitable in resell value of a car and overall bragging rights. There are many ways to “juice up” a car or truck to make it more valuable on the market, but keep in mind most additions are to make the vehicle more personalized for the owner.

The majority of tuning options for performance enthusiasts will be made to the engine of the vehicle. Engine tuning is the process of replacing or adding parts to the vehicle engine to get more power or even to get better gas mileage. The simplest of all engine tuning operations is going to be the simple replacement of the air filter.

A good body kit is giong to do wonders for a body tuning job. Body kits make a vehicle look just as impressive as they are beneficial to aerodynamic ratings. Getting an aerodynamic body kit allows for better gas mileage- which will eventually pay for itself over the years if all goes well.

Another cosmetic tuning job would be to redo the paint on the vehicle in question. Even a simple pin stripe is going to be costly- so be prepared to shell out the big bucks even for the little additions. Full-fledged paint jobs will likely cost a couple of thousand dollars, so be sure to debate whether or not the cost is worth the effect.

Keep in mind that not all tuning kits are legal in some parts of the world. Some countries demand that blue lights not be used, since emergency vehicles commonly use such lights. In the majority of places, neon lights can’t be used since they are seen as distracting. In the case of neon lights, there are usually some loopholes where the lights can be used while parked for “show”- but specific laws differ from one country to another.

Car tuning is a very fine process- and one can very easily ruin their vehicle by adding modifications to it. In addition, this will often violate the warrant in which factories give out. So if the car is damaged for a reason totally unrelated to the modification, the owner is out of luck! The best course of action would be to only agree to use car tuning kits on cars that have passed warranty.

In Conclusion

Take careful note that before anything is done to the car, check with a local automotive specialist to see what is legal. Also consult the vehicle owner’s manual to see if the warranty will be intact if the modifications are made. If both check out, it should be safe to continue with the modification.

Credit unions certainly have fewer locations and are less common than banks. That doesn’t mean that they offer services of a lower quality, though. Consider the advantages offered by credit unions to understand what differences there are between them and traditional banks.

1. Who owns a credit union? A group of investors are the owners of a bank, and as such they are responsible for decisions regarding business policies and administration. These same choices affect the ability of the investors to make money from the investments they have made in the bank. Conversely, credit unions are owned by their members and the decision making board members are volunteers that give of their time on behalf of other members. Still, each member of the credit union can vote on the policy that is to be followed since it will affect their money.

2. Do they keep your money safe? Any money being stored in a bank is guaranteed to be there by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and this guarantee is displayed at each and every bank. Credit Unions follow a similar process and are 100% secure, but the Credit Union National Association (CUNA) is the organization backing them up.

3. Who can join? Anyone who can meet the requirements of the banking institution can open an account there. Banks have a greater reserve of cash at their disposal so they offer incentives to get customers in the door. They call these “loss leaders”. If half of the people that come in open an account, then the bank can afford to take a loss on the items that they are giving away for free.

Credit unions, however, cannot be joined without first meeting some sort of prerequisite for becoming a customer. These can include factors like religion, workplace, geography, and civic affiliation. By keeping the total number of members low, credit unions can provide better, more personalized customer service.

4. Are they friendly? Banks do what they can to attract new customers, but their real loyalty belongs to the investors in charge of the bank’s care. This is why their customer service often waxes at the time you open new account but wanes quickly.

Customers of credit unions are also making the business decisions for the company, so the customer service is traditionally better. To keep future interest rates on credit cards and loans low, money that exceeds the running costs of a credit union is used to maintain interest rates on money market accounts, savings accounts, and CD’s as high as possible.

Offering unsurpassable customer relations skills and interest rates that are just plain better, credit unions are a notable threat to banks. Banks, however, have more money supporting them and are therefore able to offer bigger and better incentives to their customers. Deciding whether to store you money at a bank or credit union involves making an informed decision that relates to your personal situation.

There are many reasons in which a data centre can fail. It can be quite frustrating, so it is important to know what those reasons are so that you can prevent them or know what to do when they happen. Because a lot of data centers exist on a site separate from the computers that are retrieving data from them, it is important that data centers continue running. When they go down, all computers pulling from them from various places around a single country or even the world are not going to be able to retrieve any information. Such is true for customer service jobs in which customer information must be retrieved from a secure data centre that resides elsewhere. If that data center is not operating, money is lost because employees are unable to do their jobs and customers become very unhappy that their situation cannot be resolved.

Reasons why data centres fail

Some of the reasons why data centers fail can be prevented and then there are some ways in which they cannot. However, it is important to do what is necessary to ensure as few outages as possible.

Here are some reasons for failure:

- The “wear-in” phase ? This is the point in time in which the data center has just become operational. It is typical that certain things may fail as they are trying to become fully operational. It is like a toddler learning how to walk. The data center has to walk too, so it is good to let it run with minimal use and gradually build until it has gotten its legs. This involves comprehensive testing as the system usage increases in order to fix problems before they become a problem.

- The “wear-out” phase ? This is when the data center is reaching the end of its life. Regular maintenance and care will slow this process, but major parts will eventually wear out. It is ideal to consistently monitor the system in order to predict failure and avoid catastrophe.

- Power failure ? Power failure is devastating to anything that relies on it for operation. It is especially devastating to a data center. That is why it is important to have a generator or two ready to take over in case the power goes.

- Generator failure ? Generators need care too and they need to be tested. Power goes out and generators take over in order to keep the data center running. Generators have been known to go out and cause data center failure.

- Metal whiskers ? If the data center hardware is sitting on a metallic surface, then that metallic surface could grow zinc whiskers. These have been known to cause short circuits, especially in data centres. There are also tin whiskers that grow out from tin and they too cause shorts. Silver whiskers that grow on silver electrical contacts and gold whiskers that develop on gold plated services are also known to cause short outs. Large fans that suck the whiskers in can be used and the elements that produce them can be replaced.

Prevention is key

Prevention is the key to keeping your data center up and running. If any of these elements occur, it is good to stay calm and do what needs to be done to keep the problem from occurring again. If you have experienced generator failure, you may wish to invest in a backup to your main generator. If you?re building a new data center, be sure to use flooring that does not produce any type of metal whiskers that can short out your hardware. By being vigilant, you can ensure that your data center uptime will be at or near 100%.

Unlike virtually any other marketing tool, cold calling lets companies change courses at almost any time.

In today’s ever-changing business environment, this flexibility is critical.

Companies new to cold calling must watch early results closely.

Testing, assessing, and refining the program from the onset are critical first steps. These actions can result in a long term program that produces a predictable stream of sales opportunities.

Veteran cold callers also must work. Constant attention is needed to keep the program sharp. Here’s a recommendation: continue with the program that works, but apply a portion of your tele-prospecting investment towards testing new approaches that may surpass your existing model. When you find one that is more effective, replace your existing program, but continue to test new approaches.

It’s easy to test and change cold calling campaigns. Unlike print ads, radio spots, billboards, or most other marketing vehicles, cold calling programs make testing and applying those results to the program easy.

Here are some of the items that every program should assess:

1) The offer. Do you want to set a sales appointment? Do you want to invite people to a webinar? Do you simply want to collect email addresses for a campaign? Are you offering a free assessment, or a free trial? Do you need an incentive to enhance your “call to action?”

2) The list. Are the decision makers and the companies on your list the best prospects?

3) Talking points. Do your callers have the conversation points to highlight the key aspects of your program? Is there something compelling that needs to be added? Are the talking points too complicated or long?

4) Your calling team. How well do they represent you? How effective are they in talking to decision makers? Can they ask for the appointment?

5) Your ability to close the leads. This is the part that comes after a cold calling lead is identified. Can you cost effectively convert that lead into a sale? Do you have the people and processes in place? Are you getting qualified leads?

Case Studies

Here are short examples of savvy VSA clients who tested, assessed and refined their programs.

1) A software company implemented a program which successfully produced leads. However, the company was unprepared to convert the leads to sales. Now, this company plans a product-specific website, marketing materials and the right expertise to make sales calls. A second cold calling initiative is scheduled.

2) An online marketing company completed a program that produced poor results. The company has changed its offer to simplify steps prospective companies must take to enroll. A second campaign has been launched.

3) A commercial roofing company implemented a program and generated desired results. Later, the company realized the prospective clients were not a good fit. The company has implemented a second campaign targeting a different prospect list.

If you are planning a cold calling program, please call us to talk about the factors that can make or break your campaign. We’d like to know what marketing tools have worked for you in the past and show you how we can add to that success. We are happy to help.